WHY USE A SPRAY DRYER FOR YOUR DRYING APPLICATION?
Because of... THE PARTICLE SIZE CONTROL
The dry particle size can be easily controlled by
atomization of the liquid feed and the design of the hot gas inlet.
The correct spray dryer design and atomization technique can
increase yields for products that require classification. Spray dryers can typically produce
between 30 to 500 micron average
particle size, in a bell shaped distribution.
Because of... THE FLOW PROPERTIES OF DRY SOLIDS
The shape of most spray dried particles is spherical, which provides for fluid-like flow properties. This makes many downstream operations,
such as packaging,
pressing, filtering, and handling easier and less costly.
Because of... THE HOMOGENEOUS SOLIDS MIXTURE PRODUCED
Spray drying produces the most homogeneous product for multi-component solutions
and slurries. Each particle will be of the same chemical composition as the mixed feed.
Because of... THE EVAPORATIVE COOLING OF THE PRODUCT
The heat and mass transfer during drying occurs in the air and vapor films surrounding the droplet. This protective envelope of vapor keeps the particle at the saturation temperature. As long as the particle does not become "bone-dry", evaporation is still taking place and the temperature of the solids will not approach the dryer outlet temperature. This is why many heat sensitive products can be spray dried easily at relatively high inlet temperatures.
Because of... THE SHORT RESIDENCE TIME REQUIRED
The surface area produced by atomization of the liquid feed enables a short gas residence time, ranging from 3-40 seconds depending upon the application, which permits
spray drying without thermal degradation. This allows for fast turn-around times and product changes because there is no product hold up in the
spray drying equipment.
Because of... THE REDUCTION IN CORROSION POTENTIAL
Because a spray dryer is a gas suspended process, the dryer chamber remains dry by design. Therefore, many corrosive materials can be processed with carbon steel as the primary material of construction
of the spray dryer chamber, which reduces capital costs.
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